{"id":8222,"date":"2024-06-11T14:30:00","date_gmt":"2024-06-11T14:30:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/?p=8222"},"modified":"2024-06-11T14:30:00","modified_gmt":"2024-06-11T14:30:00","slug":"virtual-reality-for-veteran-telepain-management","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/?p=8222","title":{"rendered":"Virtual reality for Veteran TelePain management"},"content":{"rendered":"

Originally published:<\/strong> 2024-06-11T14:30:00+00:00. Historical source article: benefits, rules, amounts and deadlines may have changed. Check the official source for current information.<\/p>\n

Immersive technologies like virtual reality (VR) are becoming increasingly normal health care delivery tools across VA and clinicians are finding new ways to connect Veterans to the soonest and best care.<\/p>\n

The VISN 12 Clinical Resource Hub has adopted immersive technology use for its TelePain program led by Specialty Chief Dr. Nadia Hussain and Physical Therapist Shoba Rajamannar-Underhill, who specialize in interventional pain management. The team began prescribing headsets to patients for at-home use and the results have been incredible.<\/p>\n

Early adoption and successes<\/h2>\n

Hussain began incorporating telehealth into her care in January 2023 when she realized it would allow her to connect with her Veteran patients in their own homes. The virtual connection allows her team to provide care to those who may have trouble making it to an in-person appointment, live in rural areas or have anxiety about coming to a facility.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are inside their homes as a team. Five of us get in a virtual room and we can see their families, their pets, their lifestyle,\u201d Hussain shared.<\/p>\n

Throughout the telehealth process of administering VR, clinicians are with patients every step of the way. They begin with a pre-assessment, monitor progress halfway through and finish with a post-assessment. The team can see exactly how the patients are managing the technology, how much they are being motivated to move and everything in between.<\/p>\n

Immersive technology has introduced an effective, manageable way to deliver at-home care. Once the device is prescribed and the trial is completed, it\u2019s shipped to the patient\u2019s home and then shipped back at the end of the eight-week period. Patients don\u2019t need to clean or store devices in between uses and they can achieve results in just a few minutes of daily usage.<\/p>\n

Although care is virtual, the connection is real. \u201cThey feel supported with our team. We\u2019re engaging them along the way and their mood is better,\u201d said Rajamannar-Underhill. With the incorporation of VR, \u201cAll of the Veteran patients have mentioned that they\u2019re able to manage their mood and their stress level, and their sleep has improved.\u201d<\/p>\n

One of the methods of measuring uses the Pain, Enjoyment of Life and General Activity (PEG) Scale to assess patient pain interference with daily activities. The TelePain team documented a decrease in PEG scores for every single patient they have followed from beginning to end, indicating decreased pain and increased enjoyment.<\/p>\n

Future expansion and collaboration<\/h2>\n

Hussain and her team are now focused on getting more heads in headsets and increasing utilization of VR in care delivery. Increasing access means increasing the impact and expanding the footprint of care that VA provides Veterans. It\u2019s not just about providing relief in the moment, but also about creating experiences that will stay with the patients for a lifetime.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou can have the headset for eight weeks, but then the results of it, what you\u2019ve learned from it, those tools are there with you forever,\u201d said Hussain.<\/p>\n

The VISN 12 Clinical Resource Hub has recommended immersive technology to over 30 Veterans on behalf of interventional pain management. The team is currently tracking 25 interactions to date, all with reports of decreased depression and anxiety.<\/p>\n

Working at VA, especially in interventional pain management, Dr. Hussain said that procedures are selected based upon evidence and what the Veteran truly needs. Immersive technology assists by providing a non-invasive tool for identifying issues and next steps, also serving as a therapeutic escape.<\/p>\n

VA Immersive supports more than 2500 VA staff in the exploration and implementation of immersive technology across VA, which has now deployed over 3,300 VR headsets across more than 170 VA medical centers and outpatient clinics in all 50 U.S. states, Puerto Rico, Guam and American Samoa.<\/p>\n

To learn more, visit the VA Immersive website<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\n

Source: U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs<\/a>. Its Veterans is an independent publication and is not affiliated with or endorsed by the U.S. government.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

VISN 12 Clinical Resource Hub clinicians lead the way with TelePain, a unique approach to managing chronic pain and at-home care<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":103,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-8222","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-u-s-veterans-news"],"yoast_head":"\nVirtual reality for Veteran TelePain management - Its Veterans<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"VISN 12 Clinical Resource Hub clinicians lead the way with TelePain, a unique approach to managing chronic pain and at-home care\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/?p=8222\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Virtual reality for Veteran TelePain management - Its Veterans\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"VISN 12 Clinical Resource Hub clinicians lead the way with TelePain, a unique approach to managing chronic pain and at-home care\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/?p=8222\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Its Veterans\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2024-06-11T14:30:00+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/itsveterans.com\\\/?p=8222#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/itsveterans.com\\\/?p=8222\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"admin\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/itsveterans.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/4bf835f8c5375ef33978f3169f311668\"},\"headline\":\"Virtual reality for Veteran TelePain management\",\"datePublished\":\"2024-06-11T14:30:00+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/itsveterans.com\\\/?p=8222\"},\"wordCount\":676,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/itsveterans.com\\\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/itsveterans.com\\\/?p=8222#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/itsveterans.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/09\\\/vet-456-86.png\",\"articleSection\":[\"News & VA Updates\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/itsveterans.com\\\/?p=8222\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/itsveterans.com\\\/?p=8222\",\"name\":\"Virtual reality for Veteran TelePain management - Its Veterans\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/itsveterans.com\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/itsveterans.com\\\/?p=8222#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/itsveterans.com\\\/?p=8222#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/itsveterans.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/09\\\/vet-456-86.png\",\"datePublished\":\"2024-06-11T14:30:00+00:00\",\"description\":\"VISN 12 Clinical Resource Hub clinicians lead the way with TelePain, a unique approach to managing chronic pain and at-home care\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/itsveterans.com\\\/?p=8222#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/itsveterans.com\\\/?p=8222\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/itsveterans.com\\\/?p=8222#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/itsveterans.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/09\\\/vet-456-86.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/itsveterans.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/09\\\/vet-456-86.png\",\"width\":784,\"height\":784},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/itsveterans.com\\\/?p=8222#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/itsveterans.com\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Virtual reality for Veteran TelePain management\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/itsveterans.com\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/itsveterans.com\\\/\",\"name\":\"Its Veterans\",\"description\":\"Veterans news, benefits, health and community resources\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/itsveterans.com\\\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/itsveterans.com\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/itsveterans.com\\\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Its Veterans\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/itsveterans.com\\\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/itsveterans.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/itsveterans.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/09\\\/its-veterans-six-service-branches-flag-header-v2-2026-09-18.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/itsveterans.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/09\\\/its-veterans-six-service-branches-flag-header-v2-2026-09-18.jpg\",\"width\":2172,\"height\":724,\"caption\":\"Its Veterans\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/itsveterans.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\"}},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/itsveterans.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/4bf835f8c5375ef33978f3169f311668\",\"name\":\"admin\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/10da73410d092638799e3fa777bd59a474d7c9d9c61105a38c73dd46c050c34f?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/10da73410d092638799e3fa777bd59a474d7c9d9c61105a38c73dd46c050c34f?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/10da73410d092638799e3fa777bd59a474d7c9d9c61105a38c73dd46c050c34f?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"admin\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/itsveterans.com\"],\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/itsveterans.com\\\/?author=1\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Virtual reality for Veteran TelePain management - Its Veterans","description":"VISN 12 Clinical Resource Hub clinicians lead the way with TelePain, a unique approach to managing chronic pain and at-home care","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/?p=8222","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Virtual reality for Veteran TelePain management - Its Veterans","og_description":"VISN 12 Clinical Resource Hub clinicians lead the way with TelePain, a unique approach to managing chronic pain and at-home care","og_url":"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/?p=8222","og_site_name":"Its Veterans","article_published_time":"2024-06-11T14:30:00+00:00","author":"admin","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"admin","Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/?p=8222#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/?p=8222"},"author":{"name":"admin","@id":"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/#\/schema\/person\/4bf835f8c5375ef33978f3169f311668"},"headline":"Virtual reality for Veteran TelePain management","datePublished":"2024-06-11T14:30:00+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/?p=8222"},"wordCount":676,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/?p=8222#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/vet-456-86.png","articleSection":["News & VA Updates"],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/?p=8222","url":"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/?p=8222","name":"Virtual reality for Veteran TelePain management - Its Veterans","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/?p=8222#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/?p=8222#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/vet-456-86.png","datePublished":"2024-06-11T14:30:00+00:00","description":"VISN 12 Clinical Resource Hub clinicians lead the way with TelePain, a unique approach to managing chronic pain and at-home care","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/?p=8222#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/?p=8222"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/?p=8222#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/vet-456-86.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/vet-456-86.png","width":784,"height":784},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/?p=8222#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Virtual reality for Veteran TelePain management"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/#website","url":"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/","name":"Its Veterans","description":"Veterans news, benefits, health and community resources","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/#organization","name":"Its Veterans","url":"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/its-veterans-six-service-branches-flag-header-v2-2026-09-18.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/its-veterans-six-service-branches-flag-header-v2-2026-09-18.jpg","width":2172,"height":724,"caption":"Its Veterans"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"}},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/#\/schema\/person\/4bf835f8c5375ef33978f3169f311668","name":"admin","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/10da73410d092638799e3fa777bd59a474d7c9d9c61105a38c73dd46c050c34f?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/10da73410d092638799e3fa777bd59a474d7c9d9c61105a38c73dd46c050c34f?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/10da73410d092638799e3fa777bd59a474d7c9d9c61105a38c73dd46c050c34f?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"admin"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/itsveterans.com"],"url":"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/?author=1"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8222","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=8222"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8222\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/103"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=8222"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=8222"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=8222"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}